Updated Action Alert: U.S. House Circulates Sign On Letter Urging Administration to Fund Great Lakes in FY19

Updated alert! The deadline for this sign on letter has been extended to Thursday, November 2.

While Congress continues to debate funding levels for the current fiscal year, the federal agencies have already proposed next year’s budget to the Office of Management and Budget, the White House office that puts together the President’s budget request each year. Representatives David Joyce (R-Ohio), Sander Levin (D-Mich.), and Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.) are circulating a dear-colleague letter to the Office of Management and Budget in support of funding the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative at $300 million in the president’s fiscal year 2019 budget request – we’re hoping Coalition members can make calls this week to your Representative and urge them to sign on to this letter.

Read the letter here. This letter reminds the White House that the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is producing results. The more Representatives that sign on also helps remind the President’s budget director that this program has strong, bipartisan support in Congress. The letter will close on Halloween, October 31.

You may contact your Member of Congress via the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.

We’re hoping for a strong showing on this letter, another step in the push to continue to receive full GLRI funding. The GLRI continues to be a successful, needed program, and we need your help in making sure the critical work happening under the GLRI can continue. Please let me know if you have any questions.

The full text of the dear colleague and the letter to OMB are included below. If offices wish to sign on or have questions, please contact Rose Luttenberger with Rep. Levin (rose.luttenberger@mail.house.gov) or Chris Cooper with Rep. Joyce (chris.cooper@mail.house.gov). The deadline has been extended to Thursday, November 2.